Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte and British Prime Minister David Cameron say the European Union must rethink its approach to Russia amid ­evidence pro-Moscow separatists shot down Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 – killing 298 people – and are interfering with the crash site.

Russian President Vladimir Putin faces his sternest test as world leaders urge him to use his influence with the separatists to provide access to the crash site and end the four-month war with Ukraine.

Frustrated by the EU’s moderate response throughout the Ukraine conflict, US President Barack Obama described the crash as a “wake-up call” to Europe that the Ukraine conflict’s consequences went beyond its borders.

There were chaotic scenes on ­Saturday as observers from Europe’s Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe made their ­second visit to inspect debris and bodies scattered around the site near the ­rebel-held village of Hrabove, about 50 kilometres from the Russian border.

They found their access hampered by armed men from the forces of the self-declared People’s Republic of Donetsk. There are multiple reports claiming jewellery has been taken from the bodies and that bodies have been moved by unidentified “experts” without the approval of official investigators and that crucial evidence has been destroyed.

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A visibly angry Mr Rutte told reporters in The Hague on Saturday that Mr Putin had “one last chance to show he means to help”, shortly after holding what he described as a “very intense” conversation with the Russian leader.

The Netherlands is in mourning with 192 of the dead Dutch citizens. However, the mood appears to be changing from shock to anger.

“I was shocked at the pictures of utterly disrespectful behaviour at this tragic spot,” he said, referring to reports bodies were being moved about and allowed to rot at the scene.

“The Netherlands and the world will see that he does what needs to be done.”

The Dutch leader said his view were shared by Germany, Britain and ­Australia; countries that lost citizens when the plane crashed.

“Terrorists brought 38 bodies to the mortuary in Donetsk,” the government said. “The terrorists are seeking for the heavy load trucks to carry the plane wreckage to Russia.”

The rebels fired several shots in the air to prevent journalists from accessing the site on Saturday.

Investigators were warned off from approaching the wreckage on Friday.

They returned on Saturday but were only allowed to inspect limited parts of the site under escort.

There is mounting evidence from intelligence sources that Russian-backed separatists shot down the plane, thinking it was a Ukrainian aircraft.

A Downing Street spokesman said: “While it is too early to be categoric about the cause of the disaster, the growing weight of evidence suggests that MH17 was shot down by a surface-to-air missile and that this was fired from near Torez, in territory controlled by the separatists.

“This is backed up by claims made by separatist leaders on social media, and later removed, to have shot down an aircraft that they thought belonged to the Ukrainian military.

“On this basis, we assess that, without compelling information to the contrary, it is increasingly likely that MH17 was shot down by a separatist missile.”

Mr Cameron talked with his Dutch counterpart on the phone on Saturday.

According to a statement from Downing Street: “The PM and PM Rutte agreed that the EU will need to reconsider its approach to Russia in light of evidence that pro-Russian separatists brought down the plane.”

Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk told a German newspaper a missile launcher capable of shooting down a plane at 33,000 feet “could not be operated by drunken gorillas”, suggesting the separatists were helped by Russia.

Russia has provided the rebels with other military hardware such as tanks.

If the crash is proved to have been caused by the Russian-backed rebels, Mr Obama is likely to call for EU ­support for tougher sanctions.

However, Russia remains largely defiant.

Its media began a campaign on Saturday suggesting Ukraine had shot down the plane to gain international support for its cause.

The self-declared prime minister of the Donetsk People’s Republic, Alexander Borodai, told Russian television: “[Ukrainian president Petro] Poroshenko promised a ‘surprise’ for the rebels. I think this is the surprise he was talking about; a plane full of civilians shot down.”

Sanctions against Russia are a difficult issue for EU leaders including German Chancellor Angela Merkel given it is an important trade partner and supplies much of Europe with energy in the form of oil and gas.

Russia is the EU’s third-largest trading partner while the EU is Russia’s largest trading partner.

Dr Merkel’s influence in the EU means it has imposed lighter sanctions on Russia than the US.

Critics say this is partly because of Germany’s strong trade links with Russia, which provides more than a third of its gas imports.

“Moscow may have a last opportunity now to show that it really is seriously interested in a solution,” German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier told Bild am Sonntag newspaper.

“Now is the moment for all to stop and think about what can happen if we don’t stop the escalation.”